The Kinks, “Kinkdom” Album Review
The Kinks “Kinkdom” album was released in November of 1965 and like the 1965 “Kink-Size” release, it was a compilation record solely for the U.S. market. The material came from the “Kwyet Kinks” UK EP, singles, b-sides, and included their version of “Louie Louie,” which had already been included on the “Kinks-Size” album.
Track Listing: “A Well Respected Man,” “Such a Shame,” “Wait Till the Summer Comes Along,” “Naggin’ Woman,” “Never Met a Girl Like You Before,” “See My Friends,” “Who Will Be the Next in Line,” “Don’t You Fret,” “I Need You,” “It’s Alright,” “Louie Louie.”
Ray Davies took his first shot at social commentary on “A Well Respected Man,” with lyrics about an image obsessed young man and his morally repugnant parents. Rooted in the sins of greed, pride, and lust, thematically “A Well Respected Man” will always be relevant. Strangely, this U.S. hit, which peaked at #13, wasn’t released as a single in the U.K. Unfortunately, that highlight is followed by “Such a Shame,” an effort that feels like a young teen’s first attempt to write a song. Dave Davies penned and sang “Wait Till the Summer Comes Along,” a country/folk number in which he wallows in so much self-pity that it almost seems like a parody of the genre. “Naggin’ Woman” was left off the U.S. version of “Kinda Kinks” for good reason. It’s a cover of a Jimmy Anderson/Jerry West blues composition written in the style of Jimmy Reed. The band’s appreciation for American blues music was at a much higher level than their execution of same. “Never Met a Girl Like You Before,” originally the b-side to “See My Friends,” is another slight, skiffle influenced number.
The first side ends with “See My Friends,” one of the first songs in rock music to incorporate a drone-effect similar to sitars or tamburas in Indian music. Ray Davies has said that “See My Friends” was inspired by chants he heard from fisherman in Bombay and Dave Davies has stated that it is one of his favorite Kinks tracks. Ray’s plaintive vocals and the chanting refrain reinforce a feeling of loneliness bordering on abandonment.
“Who’ll Be the Next in Line,” a minor U.S. hit, chronicles a fickle female lover who broke the narrator’s heart. (The Krayolas, a Texas based power pop act with Hispanic heritage, once noted that they originally thought the title was “Who’ll Be the Mexican Lion”). Ray incorporated a traditional English folk sound into “Don’t You Fret,” which threatened to turn into a complete rave-up in the bridge. “I Need You,” the b-side to “Set Me Free,” was written in the style of “You Really Got Me” and “All Day and All of the Night” and competes favorably with those classics in terms of impact. Really, this song just wrestles you to the ground, kicks your teeth in, and makes you like it. “It’s Alright,” another R&B inspired rocker was the b-side to “You Really Got Me.” “Louie Louie,” a bad cover to begin with, is docked a notch here for catalogue redundancy.
The ”Kinkdom” album has some real treats and some minor pleasures but is ultimately bogged down with too much clear filler to be a successful album. Grade: B-
2 Comments
‘Kinkdom’ was the first Kinks album I bought, in the early Nineteen-Eighties. I didn’t know at the time it was an album especially complied for the United States market. It’s a rarities album, really. In retrospect I think it’s a good buy for Kinks fans who were too young, or weren’t born, to get the B-sides and the ‘Kwyet Kinks’ Extended Play when they first came out.
I think it was the first Kinks album I bought… when it came out. Dig it. If you weren’t there, then just enjoy. ”
When I saw them at the Fillmore West in 1969, they opened the second set with a roaring version of Louie Louie.
Dig it or go home.